India Minister: Taking Steps to Plug Power Shortage

By

Saurabh Chaturvedi And

Prasenjit Bhattacharya

Updated March 11, 2013 9:22 a.m. ET

NEW DELHI--The Indian government is moving to increase coal imports and electricity-generating capacity to reduce a power shortage that is hampering economic growth, Minister for Power Jyotiraditya Scindia said Monday.

It has also taken steps to prevent the type of massive blackout that last July affected more than half of the country's population, Mr. Scindia told The Wall Street Journal in an interview.